Conversations
by lemacd
Summary: Sometimes, when things are a confusing mess, it helps to have someone to talk to...
1. Chapter 1

_A/N This story was written for augiesannie on her birthday; she is letting me share it here. She's pretty awesome like that. Enjoy. _

Conversations

Part One

The sound of the crystal decanter rattled against his glass, shattering the quiet stillness of the villa. Every soul under the roof had been asleep for more than a few hours, that is, every soul except him. Sleep never came easy to him, but he hadn't caught a wink at all in three nights since the party and he was exhausted. That, coupled with the generous amount of alcohol he had consumed since dinner was his only hope for any kind of rest.

Georg returned to his desk and slumped back in his chair with a heavy sigh. Notes were pouring in now from party guests, congratulating him on a wonderful ball, hinting at the suitable match with Elsa, gushing over the performance of his talented brood. He sifted through the piles of correspondence on his desk with little interest when he found the note he knew deep down was responsible for his restlessness.

_Captain, _

_I've returned to the Abbey. I'm sorry but I miss my life there too much. Please tell the children goodbye for me. _

_Maria_

At first he was shocked that she was gone, they all were. But then he was annoyed. When she first arrived he gave her nothing but angry disapproval at every turn and yet she stayed. Even after it came to blows and he ordered her to leave, she remained (she agreed to stay when he asked, though he wouldn't have blamed her if she had refused). Then, just when things changed and they actually seemed to get along quite well, she decided to leave. It made little sense.

Georg tossed back the drink and closed his eyes as it burned its way down his throat. He told himself that he wasn't angry anymore, didn't feel anything really. After all, she was going to have to leave eventually. The agreement was only for a couple months, anyway. Did it even matter?

"Don't you think you've had enough of that stuff?"

He opened his eyes and froze. He blinked a few times, glanced at the bottom of the glass in his hand and then at the figure standing by the window. She was wearing that dress, that hideous dress that the poor didn't want, hat dangling from her hands brought together primly in front of her.

"What? How? H-how did you get here?" He blinked again, even bringing his hand to his eyes and rubbing them. Maria smiled.

"You're so tired, Captain," she said sympathetically. It sounded like an observation, but he suspected she was trying to help him answer his own question. "How can you even think straight?"

"Wh-what is happening, what's going on?" Just as he tried to move and realized he couldn't, she stepped closer, tossed the hat on a nearby chair and then continued until she was standing before him at his desk. She mockingly turned in a circle for inspection.

He was a man who operated by reality and logic. Everything told him it was impossible, but somehow there she was standing in front him! Maybe it was a dream. He slapped himself in the face, hoping it would wake him but all it did was make her laugh at him. He frowned at that, and gave her a sharp glare. He realized he still held her note in his fist.

"Why did you go?" he asked quickly, waving the paper in her direction. She gave it a quick look and shrugged.

"I was going to have to leave eventually," she said, repeating his thoughts back at him. "Why does it matter?"

"That's not an answer," he interjected.

"No, it's a question," she replied quickly, turning away and looking over her choices of a place to sit. "It's not like you're angry about it anymore. In fact, you don't feel anything." She made her pick and settled herself gracefully at the end of the leather sofa. She looked at him expectantly.

"You didn't say goodbye, you just… left," he said, unsettled to hear his thoughts thrown at him yet again. "The children were heartbroken." Maria tilted her head and studied him for a minute as he shifted in his chair. He remembered that she was always looking at him as if she was trying to see through him. It was most disturbing now that they were alone.

"So you _are_ angry," she nodded.

"For my children, yes! After everything that's happened, they deserved better than a second hand goodbye left in a note."

"I suppose I would have said goodbye differently," she mused, before narrowing her eyes at him. "If they were the reason I left." She made a tired sound as she stood up again and moved to the side of his desk once more. She saw the notes covering the surface and leaned over them, twisting and turning her head as she read them.

"What's all this? So many," she said with an impressed gasp. "Oh, look! Here's one from the Ebberfelds. They seemed so friendly. They had such lovely things to say about the children at the party."

"Yes, well… these are some thank you notes from the guests," he mumbled as he placed a hand on them and shifted them around as if showing them to her.

"It was a success, then? The party?" Georg nodded slowly. "Good, I'm glad. From where I stood I could tell your friends were having a good time."

"Everyone had a good time," he mumbled in agreement. "Even you."

"I never said I didn't," she said defensively and then added quietly, "Not once. In fact, it was one of the most beautiful nights of my life." He couldn't help but note the wistfulness in her voice. In the far back corner of his mind, he had a feeling he knew why.

"Actually," he came back with a sudden renewed indignation. "You were asked to join the party and you seemed rather resistant to the idea."

"Of course I didn't want to stay for dinner," Maria answered huffily. "I had already eaten with the children. It was quite an inappropriate suggestion that Max made."

"You could've said no."

"I tried to say no!" She stood up straight and crossed her arms. "Max wouldn't let me, you were no help. None whatsoever."

"Well, I thought…" He looked into Maria's face and stumbled. "I didn't think…"

"All you had to do was come up with some excuse to let me off the hook but instead you… you didn't." She drew back with a mix of hurt and anger in her eyes. "My place was with the children. It was my task, the reason I was sent. Certainly not to mingle with party guests. And certainly not to…" She stopped.

"Not to what?" he asked.

"You know," she snipped. "Come now, Captain. You're going to have to think about it at some point."

"I _don't_ know," he muttered. "Why do I have to think about anything anyway? Clearly I'm drunk and this is all just… insanity, that's what this is. You aren't really here. I've gone mad or I'm having some kind of dream or something." With that Maria returned to her spot on the sofa and waited. He felt his body slump in resignation. "What is it you want me to think about?"

"I don't want you to do anything," she said calmly. "You're the one trying to figure out why you care so much that I left."

"I don't care," he said, but it came out half-heartedly. He sighed. "Well, maybe a little. Everything was so much better when you were here. And it's been steadily falling apart since you left. I'm sure it was wrong to let the children get so dependent on you, but—"

"This isn't about the children," she reminded him. "What could they have possibly done to make me run away? Can't you put that military strategist mind into gear and figure at least that much out?"

"Fine," he replied. "This isn't about them." He rubbed the back of his neck and groaned. "You were angry. That's why you left. You were angry because I wouldn't help you get out of Max's invitation to dinner." He tapped his hand on the edge of his desk with finality but she was shaking her head slowly.

"I wasn't angry," she scoffed. "Put out, maybe. Embarrassed. Nervous. You've seen me be angry, Captain."

"Yes," he conceded. "So it wasn't because of what Max did?" She shook her head again. "And not because of the children?" She shook her head again and stared at him as if willing him to figure it out. "Me?" Maria hesitated, looked at her fingers twisting together in her lap. Finally she nodded. "But what… what did I do that was so terrible that you had to run away?"

"Captain," she said gently, her voice smooth and calm. "You aren't really asking me, you are asking yourself. I've told you that it was one of the most beautiful nights of my life. Can't you figure this out? Can't you see what made me run away?"

"No, I can't," he answered helplessly. "How could it have been the most beautiful night if you left before even being a part of it?" He waited for her to answer, but she remained silent. Her expression remained serene, but he could see something in her eyes, something familiar and it made the hairs on his neck stand up. As soon as he thought of when he had seen it before, she gave him a relieved smile.

"I never expected to dance that evening," she said. "If you had asked me, I probably would have tried to refuse. But you just held out a hand to me, so earnestly and so… hopefully. I couldn't help but take it."

He sat up straight and considered her there for a moment. Once the matter was spoken aloud, he found himself filled with a sudden boldness. Another consequence of too much drink, he thought. Then again, so was she, sitting there in his study in the wee hours of the morning. It was all just a figment of his alcohol-addled imagination. He suddenly realized he didn't have to guard his thoughts. She knew them anyway.

"I was fascinated by you," he said, the words tripping out of his mouth. "I had just walked through the ballroom where some of the most dashing men were waltzing with the most beautiful women to the most exquisite music. But as soon as I saw you dancing with Kurt, well… you were so lovely." He added with an embarrassed cough. "And I was jealous."

"Of Kurt?!" Maria giggled. "That's positively absurd!"

"I know," Georg smiled. "But in that moment, seeing you laughing, so free, so happy… I knew that nothing inside could possibly compare to the beauty that I saw outside. And I resented that I was supposed to be inside."

"How very brave of you, Captain, to breech the great divide."

"It helped to be wearing all those medals, I suppose." She laughed again, rocking back on the sofa with such delight that he couldn't help but grin at her. "Anyway, it was just a dance."

The smile died quickly on her lips. He watched as the familiar look on her face returned. Her eyes explored his, wildly searching for some kind of truth. That night that they danced, she froze in his arms and looked at him exactly the same way. He recalled that in the stillness of their pose, she began to tremble.

"You became frightened at the end," he suggested, and quickly Maria cast her eyes to the floor.

"I-I couldn't remember the steps," she practically whispered. "But actually, the truth is…"

"Yes?"

"The truth is that I forgot that I was dancing," she said, still unable to look him in the face. "Suddenly I was distracted and lost track of what I was doing." Finally she sat up and looked at him. "I was frightened, yes, but the thing is that I was also unnerved and exhilarated and so… alive! I've come to expect certain things in my life, and the feelings I had at that moment were completely bewildering."

"So that's why you ran away, then?" She didn't answer him, only stood up and picked up her hat. She stood demurely and hushed his question aside.

"You look so tired, Captain," Maria whispered. "You really should try to go to sleep."

He tried to fight the heaviness in his eyes and limbs, but then she started to sing softly and he surrendered.

_TBC… _


	2. Chapter 2

Conversations

Part Two

Georg wanted a drink in the worst way, but after what happened that night he fought the urge with all he had. His head pounded when he woke up, her note clutched tightly in his fist. He searched the room, but there wasn't a single sign that it had even happened. He told himself that he had passed out and that the combination of his exhaustion and the alcohol gave him dreams, but it didn't stop him from expecting her to come back.

But a couple days passed and his nights were quiet. They never received word from the Abbey and it seemed that she was gone for good. He shoved his memory of her and everything they talked about that night out of his mind. That was the past. It had been time to take stock and figure out where to go from there.

Elsa. It seemed almost ungrateful to spend so much time thinking about Maria when Elsa was still there, utterly devoted and by his side. Elsa had been the plan all along, at least until _she_ came along and everything he knew about his life shifted. He did what he could to bring the sanity and order back into his life by proposing to Elsa. It was the plan, he told himself again. It was expected.

He lifted a hand to his head and rubbed his temple. A headache started to blossom right behind his eyes. It was from clenching his jaw to keep smiling as they informed the children earlier that afternoon. He promised them that they would be very happy and he trusted it would be true eventually. But for now he had seven upset children who wandered who knows where and one disillusioned fiancée who retired to her room complaining of too much excitement for one day.

He needed air. He walked slowly toward the lake, pausing at the gate. He swore he could still see small puddles gathered in the cracks where his children stood dripping wet, shaking from their ill-timed dunk out of the boat. Or were they shaking because they were afraid of him and how angry he was? He wasn't exactly proud of his behavior that day but they had forgiven him for it and for everything else.

He knew they would forgive him again. Elsa might not be the most maternal choice for a new mother, but the children had much to gain from her when it came to social grace and deportment. We'll be very happy, he told himself as he stared out over the water toward the mountain that loomed large on the horizon.

"It's awfully quiet," a voice said from behind. He closed his eyes and braced himself to turn around. He had successfully convinced himself that it had been an alcohol-induced dream, citing the killer hangover the next morning as proof.

"Fraulein," he said, his voice heavy and tired. "You're back. I mean, you're not _back_, but…" He exhaled slowly.

"So quiet," Maria repeated, ignoring what he said. "Where are the children?"

"I was wondering that myself," he replied lightly, finally turning around to look at her. "Then again, that is how this works, right? I wonder but you actually ask the question." She was standing before him with perfect posture, her hands calmly at her side. He noted that she was dressed differently than the other night, no longer wearing the ugly cast-off. He didn't recognize it at first. It was plain enough, a practical shade of brown. It was flattering, he dared to admit. And it was… dry. Unlike the day he returned from Vienna. Suddenly he did remember the dress and how it simply clung to every possible part of her after her fall out of the boat.

"It isn't like them to stay to themselves for long," she said again, tugging at her dress uncomfortably. He couldn't help but smirk as he noticed she was turning a light shade of pink. "They could get into all kinds of trouble. You'll have to be sure and warn the new governess." His smile twitched for a quick moment.

"New governess? Yes, well, there isn't going to be a new governess."

"No?" Her brow shot up and her mouth dropped open.

"No," he affirmed, then turned back toward the lake and pretended to be interested in a pair of geese landing on the surface in the distance. "They will be getting a new mother instead." He paused to peek at her but she didn't react. "I don't think they are pleased. In fact, that is probably why they decided to go see you."

"What?"

"Oh, I don't know for a fact that's where they went, but they aren't here. It would make sense though. Every day they ask if you're going to come back. I told them what the note said, but anyone could see that they didn't really believe it." He turned his head to look at her. "I know I don't believe it. I still don't understand why you left." Maria shifted uncomfortably and looked down at her feet. When she looked back at him, she seemed considerably sadder.

"So you and the Baroness are to be married," she said as she cleared her throat. "I suppose I should congratulate you. I'm sure it is wonderful news."

"You don't sound convinced," he observed. Maria shrugged.

"I'm sure you have much in common." Maria raised her palms into the air and smiled. "Only a fool would wonder what you see in her."

"She is beautiful," Georg contended. At some point they began strolling along the side of the lake.

"And sophisticated," Maria offered. "She understands your world and how to act in it."

"It is a very good match. Everyone thinks so."

"Such a good reason to marry someone," Maria said and Georg bristled. He wasn't sure if she was sincere or joking.

"It's more than that, I mean, she's also charming and witty," he responded defensively, but Maria simply rolled her eyes. "Don't you think so?"

"I think she saved most of her charm for you, Captain." Georg stopped suddenly and turned to gape at her.

"Fraulein!"

"Oh, I'm sure I'm being totally unfair. I'm sure barely tolerating my presence can be considered a type of charm." Maria shook her head and laughed. Georg wanted to protest but he had to admit that he had felt some tension whenever Maria and Elsa were in the same room.

"She never had any of her own children, you know. I'm sure she saw how easy it was for you to get along with the children and maybe she was a little jealous."

"I was doing my job."

"But you were…" He paused and took a deep breath. "Elsa is used to being the center of attention wherever she goes. Even you must know how utterly spellbound the children are when it comes to you. They hang on your every word, jump when you call them. Even at the party, all the guests were eager to praise you for their wonderful performance. Can you blame her?"

Maria didn't offer much protest. In fact, she remained pensively quiet as they continued their stroll. He wondered if Maria actually knew how uncomfortable she made Elsa. He was sure he didn't help matters, but what could he do? Maria had her hand on everything that happened in his home. He thought about her and children performing the puppet show. She even got him to sing, for heaven's sake.

He tried to look at Elsa as he sang, but he knew the person he hoped to impress the most was Maria. With each glance, her face settled more and more into a smile of happy contentment and he couldn't stop himself from singing to her. Elsa's jealousy was palpable that night; when she suggested a party in her honor, he quickly agreed mostly to placate her.

"I'm sorry, Fraulein. It isn't fair for me to blame you," Georg stated. "Of course you never gave her reason to resent you."

"No," she agreed. "Not on my own anyway."

"I beg your pardon?" Maria moaned with exasperation as she stopped and spun herself to face him.

"You know very well what I'm talking about," she grumbled. "The party, Captain! She saw us dance together. She was there at the end when…" Maria cut herself off and swallowed. "Can't you admit it? Even to yourself?" Suddenly he realized he was standing there having a conversation with a complete fantasy and it was about to turn into an argument. It was the most ridiculous thing in the world.

"Why are you doing this?" he snapped.

"Why won't you even think about it?"

"Because!"

"Because why?"

"Because you left!" He was aware he was shouting. "And you, _whatever_ you are, stand there and act like I should know why! But I don't know why."

"_What a lovely couple we made_," Maria said, half quoting Elsa. "Dancing out in the chilly night air… though_ it did seem rather warm_." A small shiver ran up his back.

"You couldn't possibly have heard that," Georg muttered, kicking at the ground. Maria gave a cynical laugh and shook her head.

"Honestly, Captain," she said. "Are you deliberately trying to be so obtuse? You want to know why I left but refuse to admit that you care that I did. Surely the thought has crossed your mind that both might actually be connected. It is right there, conveniently shoved to the back of your mind. Would it end the world for you to just… be honest?"

He felt his mouth go dry. He wished she would go away. It didn't matter if he cared or not, the fact was that he was engaged and Maria was to become a nun. She ran away, yes, and it happened right after they danced together, true. But what could that have to do with anything? It was just a dance.

Just a dance.

But then the moonlight surrounded them and she practically glowed. With each intricate step he brought her closer and closer into his arms, so close he was sure he felt her heart beating. It pulsed in their joined hands, coursed through their arms. It was the passion in their movement together until the moment he looked deep into her eyes. That was when they stopped… when he saw her emotions mingle with confusion.

"You ran away because you felt something between us," he said, his voice strained and hoarse. "And I care because I felt something, too." Maria's shoulders fell as she relaxed, but there was a pain in her eyes as she looked at him.

"I'm going to be a nun," she said quietly, but the conviction was gone from her.

"And I'm going to marry Elsa," he answered and she nodded as she dropped her gaze back to the ground. "But… you don't think I should."

"It's not my place to say," Maria answered. "Besides, you don't really want _me_ to answer that."

"Yes, I do," he replied earnestly.

"No, you've already made your choice," she said as she turned at looked at him sadly. "And you don't become a decorated naval officer by second guessing. You have too much honor, Captain, and you won't go back on your word."

"But—"

"It's so quiet," Maria cut him off, looking around. "But I imagine the children will be back soon from wherever they went." Georg turned his head as, if on cue, their voices could be heard near the house. He looked back to say something to her, but she was gone.

_TBC… _


	3. Chapter 3

Conversations

Part Three

If it wasn't for the fact that she had been singing and laughing with his children mere minutes ago, he would have assumed the Maria before him was the one from his overly sensitive imagination. He had to keep telling himself that she was back, really truly back. The fact of it made his heart practically beat out of his chest.

When the children called to him, however, she turned mournful eyes at him and the beating nearly came to a dead stop. Suddenly everything in his head began to jumble together; Elsa and his engagement, choices and honor… a runaway postulant… the desperate need for something safe and expected and normal. He had sorted it all out but now she was back and he was confused yet again, possibly more than ever.

Dinner had been a struggle. Elsa sat by his side, bravely conversing mundanely about the food in an attempt to keep his attention her way. He nodded and smiled, but his eyes inevitably drifted to the other end of the table where his children pelted Maria with questions about convent life. She seemed relieved to have the distraction, never once glancing his way. If only she had, he thought. Just once, to give him some kind of inkling of why she returned. With each minute that ticked by, he was more and more certain she had come back to simply torture him.

Then, just as dessert was served, Elsa said his name sharply and snapped him out of his trance. The glass of wine in his hand slipped and spilled down the front of his shirt. She apologized for startling him, told him she had said his name three times to no avail. He squeezed her hand as he stood up quietly and excused himself to change. He didn't blame her.

In fact, it was all he could do not to thank her. It was a blessed relief to leave the table and retreat to his bedroom to gather himself.

"Quite the predicament," he heard from the shadows. He turned on the lamp to see her standing beside an armchair, her arm draped across the back as she leaned gently against it. He stared for a few seconds without saying anything. She laughed. "I assure you that she would never sneak into your bedroom, Captain."

"No, I don't suppose she would," he mumbled, reaching for his tie and pulling it loose. Her eyes grew wide when he untucked the shirt from his pants and reached for the buttons at the collar.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm changing my shirt," he said bluntly. "I spilled wine on this one. If it upsets your delicate senses, you can turn around. Or better yet, leave me alone." He heard her release a groan as she spun away. "Come now, Fraulein. You aren't even real. How can this possibly be improper? I'm simply a man getting dressed in his room alone. It's your fault anyway."

"My fault?" She exclaimed as she spun back to face him, forgetting his unassembled state of dress. "How do you figure?"

"I don't know," he muttered as he released his cuffs and tore the stained shirt off his body. "But I was looking at you when I spilled it so I blame you." He knew it was weak but it was true. His mind was not functioning with her back under his roof. "I can't believe you came back. I must say, your timing is incredible." He shoved his arms into a fresh shirt and made quick work of the buttons. "You breeze in to our lives and throw it into a complete whirl and then without any explanation you run away, leaving a devastated household in your wake. And now, just as things were starting to settle down again, as my life was starting to make sense to me again, here you are!"

"You say it like I planned everything. If I recall, you actually thanked me for what I did when I first came here. As for leaving, well… you know why I left."

"No, I _think_ I know why you left." He shot back, violently tucking in his shirt.

"Either way, it is all academic at this point. The question is no longer why I left but why I came back."

"Ha! Yes, I suppose that is the question." He continued to dress himself, his lips pressed into a firm line, his brow gathered between his eyes in a mixture of concentration and annoyance. He looked up at her and growled. She hadn't moved a muscle, just stood there in that… that blue dress that simply accentuated everything about her that he couldn't get out of his mind. "And why are you wearing that blasted dress? Are you trying to make me crazy or something?" He stalked to his opened wardrobe and pulled out a tie before slamming the door closed. The sound of it bounced off the walls around him as his shoulders slumped and he leaned his head against the furniture in resignation. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm angry at you," he mumbled without turning around.

"You aren't angry with me," Maria said dismissively. "You're angry at yourself."

"Yes." He stood up straight and made his way to the bed and lowered himself to the edge. "The problem is that I don't know what to do. I thought proposing to Elsa was the right thing to do but now… it's all so unfair for her. I can't turn back without hurting her and yet," he sighed and dropped his head into his hands. "I will hurt her anyway if I don't. I'm such a coward." Minutes went by in silence. He finally looked up to see if she was still there. She was.

She moved to stand before him and shocked him as she took the tie out of his hand, turned up his collar and began to help him finish dressing.

"I never had a chance to tell you that you were very handsome that night," she finally spoke as she concentrated on what her hands were doing under his chin. Her voice was full of sadness but it was still strong and clear. "I had never seen a Knight's Cross up close before we danced together. How did you get it?"

"What?"

"I know you're very brave, Captain. You have medals to prove it. So all this talk of being a coward, please… let's not have any of that," she scolded. She fumbled with the tie until he replaced her hands with his own and took over. She stepped back to watch. "I would still like to know how you got that medal. It's very special, isn't it?"

"Oh, well, um… it was during the war," he started to explain. "The situation was quite precarious, our U-boat had cruised into enemy waters. It was imperative that we get away as soon as we could." He looked at her, unsure why she was so interested. It had been so long ago.

"You saved your men," she said, suggesting that was the moment of bravery that earned him the award.

"No," he said, then shook his head. "I mean, yes the men were saved in the end. But I found that we were in position to take out an armored cruiser. I had to make a decision. If we stayed to take out the ship, I could not be sure we'd make it back. In the end, I ordered the attack. We sank the ship and managed to return alive."

"That's amazing," Maria gasped. "You had so much to lose!"

"Yes, but there was much more to gain," he replied.

"Still," she huffed. "It was brave."

"I wasn't brave! I was so afraid I could barely think," he scoffed. "I was acting purely on instinct."

"You made a very difficult decision, Captain. You weren't given that medal because of your instinct. You got it for making a choice when it counted the most." He listened as she spoke, thinking about the moment he gave the order, how there was so much relief as soon as he did even though he had no idea what the outcome would be, relief simply for making a decision. None of it compared to the elation he felt when his instinct had proven to be right. He could still hear the cheer of his men when it was all over and they had been victorious.

Maria nodded at him and smiled. His returned to the matter of the tie still hanging loosely in his hands. It was getting ridiculously late. The children were already in bed and he was sure Elsa would be looking for him. As he began to twist the silk around his neck into a perfect knot, Maria headed toward an open window and peered out into the night.

"It's such a beautiful evening," she commented. "You should go get some fresh air and clear your head. You have a choice to make, Captain."

"I know." He slipped his arms into his jacket and moved to where she stood staring out at the sky. "If only I knew why you came back… a hint or a sign, anything to let me know that maybe you feel for me the way I feel for you."

"You are an infuriating man," Maria moaned as her hands flailed at her sides. "I gave you a huge sign!"

"When?" he asked in complete disbelief.

"I came back!" Maria shouted in complete frustration. "Shouldn't that be enough? Doesn't that tell you all you need to know?" Georg saw the tears starting to shine in her eyes as her gaze softened. "Captain, I already made half of the decision for you. All you have to do is finish it." The room became silent as Georg considered her words.

"There's so much to lose," he said quietly, returning his gaze to the view outside his window. He closed his eyes.

"But there's so much more to gain," was the gentle reply.

He took a deep, cleansing breath. First he should find Elsa to end things. He had no idea what he would say to her, but he hoped that she would understand and see how he couldn't possibly make her happy. After that, he would find Maria and tell her that he loved her. If his instincts still served him correctly, she would tell him that she loved him, too.

Time was running out and he was scared. It was a decision that would change lives.

A feeling of relief rushed over him as soon as he gave himself the order to ask Maria to stay forever. He didn't have to open his eyes to know the specter was gone for good.

_Fin_


End file.
